A Hero's Bond
by AsteriaKimeNymar
Summary: The bonds that tie Heroes together are suggested to be stronger than even death itself. Throughout every trial and hardship, these bonds should persist. Well...in theory, at least. So watch as the relationships between Heroes are strengthened, weakened, or even destroyed. Short, mostly random stories. Ch1: When a Hero falters in his belief, it takes another to set him straight.


Woo, story!

This story acknowledges my lack of Ike until the 8% banner, and the currently +4 Soren waiting at the time for him to come home. Roy was my first 5-star back in the early days, followed shortly after by Nowi. So Roy's got that 'sage advice' when it comes to being a Hero.

I may turn this into a series. Who knows. *12/16/17 EDIT: Changed my mind quickly enough. Have too many ideas that could work under the same concept. Sooo...hooray?

Disclaimer: I don't own Heroes, whether it be the game or the characters. Or any third thing I'm forgetting.

Onwards to storytelling!

* * *

The battlefield had never been known as anything but a harsh place, filled with little more than death and despair. But at the same time, those who survive their ordeals forge bonds that can last for lifetimes.

And yet...there are times when said bonds are put to the test, and strained beyond their initial capabilities. Betrayal and loss have become far from unusual to even the purest of warriors. Yet still they push onward, their goals sticking fast to their minds. Despite all of their hardships, they continue forward, never ceasing to rest until their tasks are complete.

To bear such burdens and rise above them...

This is why these warriors are known as Heroes.

-p-

The kingdom of Askr. An almost mortal heaven connecting all of the realms to one another. And within this kingdom's castle was an enormous library, filled to the brim with books of every genre for readers to get lost in.

Walking through the giant golden doors was a young boy with fiery red hair and a determined stride. But he hadn't come here to read. He maneuvered his way through the library, bright blue eyes scanning every nook and cranny. He saw and greeted many faces, but none were his goal.

He finally found who he was looking for in a small alcove on the other end of the library. The space was dark, save a small window revealing the dusk's fading light, but he could still tell who it was by the dark hair and robes, the small red mark on his forehead, and the considerable number of books he had piled up in an almost protective wall around him. "There you are, Soren."

Ruby-colored eyes glanced up from the book in their owner's hands; they glowed dimly, explaining why they were able to see in such poor lighting. "Roy."

"You weren't at supper...again..."

Soren's eyes narrowed. "I'm not hungry."

"Which is what you say every single time we confront you. And that's almost every day now. You're not going to last much longer without collapsing at this rate. Nowi's at the point of suggesting we tie you up and force you to eat something."

"My eating habits are no concern of yours or anyone else's, Roy." He stared back at the page he had been reading as a sign that, for him, the conversation was over. "Now leave me be."

Roy, on the other hand, wasn't going to leave it at that and walk away. So instead, he moved a small pile of three or four books slightly off to the side in order to plop down right in front of the mage. He leaned in a little closer to try and see the words on the page for himself. "Whatcha reading?"

Soren looked back up at the lordling pointedly, a faint growl rising from his throat. "Need you invade not only my business, but my personal space as well? You're becoming as much a nuisance as an insect. Now shoo, before you're swatted like one."

The redhead pouted and sat back. "Y'know, you were never this rude. Sure, you were kind of aloof and standoffish at first, but not outright hostile. So SOMETHING had to have happened to change that..." He pondered what he said for a moment, the, realizing something, leaned back to where he was and asked slyly, "Would you react the same way if I were Ike...?"

Soren visibly bristled at the question, and his stare turned into a vicious glare. He snapped his book shut. "How dare you ask that-!" He attempted to swap it with another on his right, but his hand met only the floor. "Wh-"

"Looking for this?" Roy held up a certain book – a wind tome, in fact – that he had swiped during the previous inquiry. On his face was a playful smirk that quickly turned into a frown. "So Ike's the issue then, huh?"

"Tch." The mage made a grab for the book, but the lordling quickly stood and took a step away. "Give that back!"

"Y'know, now that I think about it," he pondered, a hand on his chin, "it WAS after we faced Ike when you started REALLY being closed off, wasn't it? Before then, you would at least give us the time of day. Now you just pretend the world doesn't exist unless absolutely necessary."

"Don't pretend you understand me," Soren snapped. "You know nothing about me."

"I know that Ike is the only person you really consider to be a friend. So having to fight him would be a major blow to you," Roy said. "What I don't know, however, is who you've come to resent more for it – Ike...or yourself."

Soren was silent now, and he no longer made an attempt to retrieve his tome. He just sat there, staring at the floor for several long moments. When he finally spoke, it was in a whisper, barely audible. "Do you...know what it feels like? To have to fight against the only person who even still matters to you?"

"I..." The lordling sighed. "There have been times when I had faced my father...or old friends...or even...even the mother I had believed to be long since dead and gone." He sat down, and placed the tome on the floor in between the two of them. He turned his gaze to the growing darkness outside. "Sometimes...sometimes I've wondered if they realize it's me they're fighting. Or if they even care. But then..." he shook his head and gave an almost wry chuckle, "then they come here, and they act as if we had never tried to kill each other..."

"How...How do you manage to put these feelings aside...How do you manage to still stay so happy all of the time?"

He shrugged. "I...suppose I've just come to accept it, in a sense. I read once that in the world of Awakening exist gateways to all sorts of realms – and even alternate versions of the same realms. S-So..."

"So there can also exist multiple versions of ourselves," Soren finished quietly.

"B-Basically."

"...And of the people we love."

"...Yeah."

The mage went silent again. Roy sighed. "I...don't think there's really much we CAN do, as much as I hate the thought of saying it. It's just how the realms are, y'know?"

"Is it possible, then...that there are versions of our realms where you've a completely different mother, or...where Ike and I had never even met...?"

"I..." the lordling shifted his gaze to staring at the floor awkwardly, "I hadn't really thought of that. B-But-!" he looked back up at the mage, "Those aren't our realms. In our realms, my mother is who she is, and you and Ike are closer than blood. Other realms can't take that away from us. Plus, who knows! What if the gates here only open to our specific versions of our realms? Then there would be no need to worry about meeting other versions of the people we know. They'd be exactly the same here."

Soren glanced at him, only to look back down at the floor. "...But that's a 'what if' scenario. What is there to prove that what you say is the case?"

Roy shrugged again. "There is really no way to tell if they're the exact same people we once knew. But that's what faith's for, y'know? Sometimes, you've got to turn off the part of your brain that's making you see things only realistically, and let your heart do the thinking for once."

He was still for a moment longer, then looked up to see Roy grinning widely at him. He sighed and managed to crack a small smile. "Very well. I suppose I can at least make an attempt," he said, then quickly added as an afterthought, trying to force the smile back down, "if only to make you stop annoying me as much."

The redhead laughed at the mage's continued attempt to put up a front. "You can let yourself show emotion sometimes, y'know, even if it's only around people you're comfortable with. Unless...you're not comfortable around me?"

"It's not- I just-..." Soren looked down, then glanced back at him, only to roll his eyes and scoff. "Just stop looking like a kicked puppy, alright?"

"Ha!" Roy jumped up. "Y'know, you might try to seem like you're uncaring, but on the inside, you're just a big softie, huh?"

"What?" A moment of déjà vu washed over him, but for some reason he couldn't help but feel...comforted by it.

"Oh, nothing~" He held out a hand for the other boy to take, which he did after a moment. "Now, c'mon. The staff's still in the kitchen. How 'bout we get something for you to eat proper?"

The two left that small alcove, where the last slivers of light closed on the wall of books, broken through for the first, and hopefully final, time.


End file.
